


Never known sleep like this

by maybewhenthetimecomes



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Fluff, M/M, No Angst, and andrew eating too many waffles, just two idiots loving each other a lot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2020-03-09 19:38:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18923707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maybewhenthetimecomes/pseuds/maybewhenthetimecomes
Summary: Neil and Andrew make good use of their relatively empty schedules to spend some time together.





	Never known sleep like this

**Author's Note:**

> I'm aware the title (inspired by in a week by hozier (because im a huge lesbian and so i can't not include him)) and summary make this seem slightly nsfw but I promise it's not lmao. I had a really weird dream myself a few weeks ago and I'm currently back on my aftg obsession so this was the result. I hope you enjoy it!

Neil's been having super weird dreams lately. Not necessarily bad ones, which is an improvement from the panic attack-inducing ones about his father hacking everyone he loves into tiny little pieces, but still. They're weird. 

 

As he tries to make sense of the mess of sensations in his head, his brain obviously still trying to process what happened in his dream, he hears someone walk through the dorm room. For a moment, Neil panics, body tensing at the possibility of an intruder in the dorm, but then he recognizes Andrew's slouching footsteps making their way around the kitchen. 

 

He glances at the clock sitting on the dresser. 3:38 in the morning. Early, but still early enough to go to the bathroom and go back to bed and sleep for a good few hours. 

 

He shoves his duvet down his mattress, not caring to be quiet for Kevin. His snoring teammate requires much more noise in order to be woken up, especially at this hour. 

 

Trying to shield his sensitive eyes from the light in the living room, Neil walks toward the bathroom. Before he can twist the doorknob though, his foot hits an errand pair of shoes left in the hallway, which in turn slide into a bag of empty bottles. Neil cringes at the sound and looks guiltily at the still open dorm room door. That might have woken up Kevin. He tries to listen to an interruption in the snoring, but it doesn't seem like it disturbed his sleeping roommate too much. Relieved, Neil turns back around. 

 

When he does so, Andrew is standing mere inches away from his face. 

 

The sound Neil makes is hushed, but extremely embarrassing all the same. He was so preoccupied with Kevin he didn't even register Andrew walking toward him, let alone him being so goddamn close. He is sure his mom is cursing him from her sandy grave. 

 

“Morning, rabbit,” Andrew says in an unimpressed tone. While Neil is still trying to catch his breath, Andrew shifts the pint of ice-cream he's holding from his right hand to his left, using the free hand to lean against the wall and cut off Neil's exits. 

 

Neil notices the motion, but decides to ignore it for now. “If Kevin catches you eating that, he's going to give you hell for it,” he says instead. “It's not on the diet list,” he teasingly quotes Kevin's rant from last week. 

 

“Let him. See if I care. What are you doing out of bed? Don't tell me you're doing your morning runs this early now, I really might kill you.”

 

“I could ask the same of you. And no. I just had a weird dream and now I need to pee. Can I go?”

 

Andrew obliges, dropping his hand while Neil passes him. As Neil does so, he twists his body towards Andrew. “Will you join me on my run later?” he asks with a lopsided smile. Andrew just rolls his eyes, which Neil takes as not being a no, at least. 

 

He goes to the bathroom quickly, since he can feel his feet turning deathly cold. When he comes back in the shared bedroom, he can see Andrew is already bundled up in his own bunk. Neil tries to make eye contact, but all he can see is a puff of Andrew's curls above the covers. 

 

As he climbs the wobbly stairs to his own bunk, he hears Andrew's voice in a hushed tone. “I'll join. But you owe me waffles for breakfast afterwards.”

 

Biting back an amused comment about the fact that getting waffles afterwards kind of defeats the purpose of running, Neil grins. He hums in reply, and shuffles back under his duvet. 

 

~

 

When Neil wakes up again, everything seems to be the same as a few hours before that- except for the beeping alarm coming from his phone. He mashes at the buttons, trying to get it to stop, when he sees Andrew get out of bed and start ruffling through his workout clothes. Neil finally finds the right button and shuts off the alarm, blinking the sleep out of his eyes while he climbs down from his bunk. Before his feet touch solid ground, he is hit in the face by a pair of running shorts and a t-shirt. With a small grin, Neil peels the sports gear of his face and makes his way out of the bedroom to change. Andrew is quick to follow, and they use the dim light coming through living room window to change in shared silence.

 

Outside, the sun is close to peeking above the hill that Fox Tower is built on. Andrew and Neil use the steep descent to warm up their legs, before breaking into a faster pace once they hit level ground. 

 

Now that Neil is fully awake, the memories of last night’s dream start coming back to him. As they round the corner towards campus, Neil tells Andrew about it, not bothered by the fact that he doesn’t get much of a response from his friend. They often do this; get some time alone together, with no interference from the rest of the team, to do simple things that would be much more boring when done alone. 

 

Around them, campus is starting to wake up, and it becomes more difficult to run freely without bumping into people. After Andrew almost floors someone for the third time that morning, Neil decides it’s time to call it a day.

 

“You wanna get breakfast? Or do you want to hit some more people before we head back?”

 

“It’s not my fault they don’t look where they’re going,” Andrew responds with a flat tone. 

 

Neil pretends he doesn’t hear how winded Andrew sounds from just forty minutes of running, and takes Andrew’s sullen answer as a yes. Luckily, there is a breakfast place nearby that’s not too expensive, and so they walk the rest of the way there.

 

As they wait for the obviously hungover waiter to notice them and take their order, Neil peers at Andrew from behind his menu.

 

“Do you think dreams have meaning?” he asks.

 

Andrew briefly flickers his eye away from the menu to look at Neil. “Maybe.”

 

“That’s a very ambiguous answer,” Neil responds.

 

Andrew looks back at the menu. “The same way that dreams are ambiguous too. Didn’t realize you were looking for an academically sound answer here.”

 

Neil grins, but drops the topic. He had not been expecting such an answer from his friend, but it was somehow comforting that Andrew indulged his questions with an answer even if he didn’t really care. Some might see it as basic human decency, but Neil had come to understand that Andrew didn’t show respect and affection in the way that many others did. Neil was glad to be one of the people that understood Andrew in this way.

 

The waiter finally takes notice of them, and jots down their orders with a quick apology. Coffee arrives soon after and the two of them gratefully clasp their hands around the warm cups. The waiter had also set down a small bowl filled with sugar, cream and cookies, which Andrew quickly dumps into his coffee at alarming quantities.

 

“At this point there’s more sugar in your cup than coffee, I think,” Neil mutters with a smile.

 

“You’re not allowed to criticize me in any way right now,” says Andrew, stirring his coffee to try and incorporate everything. “I deserve this.”

 

“I’m not criticizing. Merely commenting,” Neil fires back.

 

“Your comments feel like criticism.”

 

Their back-and-forth is interrupted by the waiter, who sets down a plate loaded with waffles in front of Andrew, and a bowl with yoghurt and fruit for Neil. “Enjoy,” he says, before walking away to serve some other guests now that the diner is filling up.

Neil was only joking about Andrew’s sugar habits, of course, but he truly doesn’t understand how his friend can stomach that kind of food so early in the morning. Instead of commenting on it, he just sips his coffee, watching Andrew finish his plate at inhuman speed.

 

Under the table, Neil's calf brushes Andrew's. Andrew gives no indication that he's noticed, so Neil doesn't take his leg away. They stay like that for the rest of the meal, softly touching. 

 

Once Neil has finally finished his own breakfast as well, they pay and leave the diner. The sun is fully out now, and Neil is surprised by how warm it feels. The two of them quickly find a tree to stand under, and Andrew pulls out a cigarette. Neil declines when his friend offers him one, too. 

After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Neil opens his mouth again.

 

“Do you have class after this?”

 

Andrew nods the affirmative, and drops his cigarette into a grate below their feet. “Not until 2pm, though. Might take a nap, since I’m so fucking sleep deprived now.”

 

Neil grins. “Perfect. You can dream about me.”

 

The eye-roll that Andrew gives him is almost painful to look at. “Dreams aren’t real, Neil.”

 

“I thought I was a pipe dream,” Neil quips back. “You’re a nightmare,” Andrew replies. “Let’s get back to the dorm, you stink.”

 

And so they do. Neil and Andrew take turns in the shower and quickly say their goodbyes afterwards as they make their way to class. When Neil enters his classroom, he can still feel the hard press of Andrew's goodbye kiss, if he concentrates hard enough. 

 

~

 

Class is boring, and Neil's body is slowly registering the effects of a few hours less sleep. It doesn't take long for him to nod off as his professor keeps droning on about Spanish verb conjugation. He really should be paying attention, but it's so tempting to let his mind drift to more interesting topics. 

 

Neil is still thinking about Exy strategies when the lecture ends, and so he's almost too distracted to realize that everyone else is leaving to make room for a new group of students. He scrambles to pack his stuff and make his way down the stairs, as he spots a blond head in the crowd. For a moment, he thinks it's Andrew, but then he remembers that Andrew doesn't have class and that Biopsychology takes place in this lecture hall after Spanish ends, so the tiny blond he spotted is most definitely Aaron. He sticks his hand up in a greeting anyway, and he receives a nod from his teammate in return. 

 

Neil and Aaron are still not on the best of terms, but they have slowly learned to tolerate each other. It helps that they don't share any classes and that they have such different positions on the court, Neil thinks. So although Andrew probably doesn't give a shit, Neil tries to contain his temper around the second Minyard twin, and things seem to be going relatively okay in turn. 

 

Spanish was Neil’s only class today, so he decides to go back to the dorm and study there before it’s time for afternoon practice. Normally they would have practice in the mornings too, but their last Exy game was already a month ago. With the season winding down, Wymack reduced their practice time. Neil wasn’t super happy about it and neither was Kevin, so the two of them could often be found on the court anyway. This morning had been a rare exception, and although it goes against his principles to miss out on any Exy, Neil is happy to have spent some time with Andrew outside their dorm or the court.

 

The dorm was quiet when Neil makes his way inside, but from the entrance he can already see Andrew’s blond head peeking out from behind the couch cushions. It seems his friend has followed through on his promise to take a nap, so Neil cautiously closes the door behind him and sits down at his desk. He pulls out his math homework from the pile and tries to focus on this week’s assignments, but it is very tempting to look over his shoulder to watch Andrew.

 

Most people seem to prefer Andrew being asleep above having to deal with him while he was awake. They probably found him less intimidating that way, Neil thinks to himself. He disagrees with those people. Andrew is always intimidating, even fast asleep. Not that Neil is scared of him, he has absolutely no reason to be. But Neil knows that Andrew will always be there for him and the fact that he’s asleep changes nothing about this.

 

Neil had just turned back to his homework when he hears Andrew move.

 

“Staring.” His friend mumbles from the couch.

 

Neil doesn’t dignify that with a response; his blush is probably telling enough.

 

“Did you sleep well?” He asks instead.

 

“Well enough.” Andrew had moved from the couch to stand behind Neil. “Could’ve slept a little longer, but some pest woke me up.”

 

“How rude of them.”

 

Neil has completely given up on finishing his math homework. Just having Andrew stand behind him is distracting enough, but now his friend’s hand is carding through his hair, while the other hand rests beside his own on the table. Relaxing his neck, Neil leans into Andrew, stopping just short of his chest. In response, Andrew steps forward, allowing Neil’s head to rest against him.

 

They share a very long moment like that, with Andrew’s hand in Neil’s hair finding all the spots that make shivers run down Neil’s spine. The bright midday light is streaming in through the window, making everything warm and hazy. It feels like they are standing still in time, although this is the only thing that has ever happened and will ever happen. It’s strange, but comfortable.

 

~

 

After god knows how long, they are forced to break apart. Kevin herds them to practice along with the other Foxes, and Andrew and Neil are a court’s length away from each other again. It’s only at the final scrimmage, a good few hours into practice, that Neil is within a few yards of Andrew again. He takes the opportunity to wrestle the ball he’s carrying into the net with an impossible twist of his racquet. Or so he thinks. At the last possible moment, Andrew moves, and the ball ricochets away between Neil’s legs. To retaliate, Neil keeps running forward instead of slowing down, and the two of them go sliding into the goal.

 

It earns him an angry comment from Wymack and a disappointed look from Matt, but the hint of a smile on Andrew’s face makes it all worth it.

 

~

 

It’s Friday, so Andrew piles his family into the Maserati and they take off to Columbia. Nicky tries to convince everyone to go to Eden’s, but only Kevin and Aaron seem to be willing to go. Nicky is clearly disappointed when Neil refuses to come with them, but takes it in stride at the end. He simply ruffles Neil’s hair, tells him to keep his hands out of the cookie jar, and not-so-discreetly tells him where the condoms are. After a discussion about driving Andrew’s car that Andrew ends by giving Kevin the finger and going to his room, the three of them take an Uber to the nightclub and Neil and Andrew are alone in the house.

 

Even though it’s only 10pm, Neil decides to just go to bed. Or, the couch, rather. He and Andrew sometimes share a bed when they are in the Columbia house, but Neil thinks it’s better to not push Andrew’s buttons any further tonight.

 

But when he goes upstairs to get his toothbrush from the bathroom, Andrew is just opening the door to his bedroom.

 

“You can sleep here tonight. Yes or no?”

 

Neil smiles. “Of course it’s a yes.”

 

Andrew just rolls his eyes softly and goes back inside. But the door is left open, and Neil slips through it when he is done brushing his teeth.

 

The sheets are pleasantly warm when he crawls underneath them, and so is Andrew’s body when they press themselves against each other. Sleeping together is difficult for them, but with each time it gets a little easier. There were still nights where Neil wakes up and sees Andrew sleeping in the chair, unable to handle their proximity, or where Neil almost launches them both out of bed in panic after a bad dream. But luckily, most nights, they balance each other out perfectly, and they find peace under their shared sheets.

 

That night, Neil sleeps fitfully, and he dreams of only Andrew.

  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
